TV Reviews

There are two current TV technologies in use, LCD and OLED, with both types now having an increasing number of High Dynamic Range (HDR) capable sets amongst their ranks. There are no plasma TVs available to buy new in the UK any more.
LCD TVs with LED backlight systems account for the vast majority of Television sales in the UK but there are still some (low-end) LCD TVs available with CCFL (tube) backlights. LED TVs offer thin designs and, in some cases, curved screens but their drawbacks can be poor black levels, motion resolution and viewing angles.
OLED TV is a new technology that promises the best of LCD design and Plasma picture quality in one package. OLED TV is the next big thing in Televisions offering super thin screens, outstanding black levels, contrast ratio, superb colours and good motion performance. OLED TVs can also be curved.
LCD and OLED TVs are not only available as full HD resolution screens, but you can also buy Ultra HD 4K LCD and OLED models. Ultra HD 4K is four times the resolution of Full HD (1080p). The latest picture innovation is HDR and, going forwards, all the high ranking TVs from the major manufacturers will be capable of showing this new form of video. HDR is a way of encoding and displaying content which then produces pictures with much brighter highlights and more details in the dark sections of the video than conventional (SDR) material.
Almost all televisions now sold offer some form of Smart TV features. Smart TV includes video on demand services like Netflix and BBC iPlayer as well as applications, games, catch up TV and YouTube. With 4K and HDR on the rise, it’s also worth looking out to see if a particular TV has the capability to show UHD/HDR content from the likes of Amazon, Netflix and YouTube.
To ensure your next TV is well future-proofed, it’s worth looking to see if it has HDR support, HDMI 2.0(a) connections, HDCP 2.2 compliance, the ability to display a wider colour spectrum than conventional TVs and a 10-bit panel. The industry has recently got together to define some standards for the next generation of home video so if you see a TV marked as being UHD (Ultra HD) Alliance Premium, you know it has a minimum of these features.
The top selling TV manufacturers include Samsung, LG, Sony, Panasonic, Philips and Hisense.